Stormgear Goblins
The Stormgear Cartel is one of the newer cartels that, due to a history with Kul Tiras, took sides with the Horde in order to preserve themselves. They are masters of naval warfare and once possessed the second largest militarised navy and second largest merchant fleet that could almost rival the Steamwheedle Cartel. However, a bloody conflict with the Kul Tiran navy resulted in the end to this prosperity. They were "politely" asked to vacate their original capital in the Stormgear Shipyards on Kezan when they took sides, as the other cartels there wished to ensure there was no doubt as to the rest of the Cartels' neutrality. As a result, most Stormgear goblins now accompany Garrosh on his expedition in the Eastern Kingdoms. =Government= Although now independent of the Trade Coalition, the Stormgear Cartel continues to govern itself by similar means. Even as a subsidiary of the Horde they resolve to uphold their traditional culture, probably because it’s the only culture they have ever known and it’s worked effectively so far. Because of their newfound isolation from the Coalition, they have formed their own inner council, currently composed of Ergan and his closest sub-commanders, the two moguls that survived their exile. The idea of the goblin cut-throat meritocracy, dubbed by some a throatocracy, is that the Trade Prince works his way into office through sheer political and economic guile, outpacing his competitors, destroying them or taking them over. Upstarts must be squashed and indeed some deals must be made. There is as much under-table money slipping and shifty suitcase-exchange handshakes as there is ruthless business manoeuvring. =Military= Navy Although a pale shadow compared to what it used to be, the Stormgear Cartel still possess veritable firepower at sea as well as the technology to back it up. A miasma of repurposed and armoured transports as well as ironclad battleships and cruisers forms the remainder of their forces, and is still a destructive force when used correctly. Their ability to efficient transport troops and materials is also veritable thanks to the survival of several specialised transports. Their sailors are also experts in their field and work with a ruthless efficiency. Ground Forces Stormgear marines are the equivalent of a militia more than they are a private army. They are sailors, dock workers and labourers who take up arms to defend their settlements, often relying on guns, explosives and other technological constructs. Their use of traps or hidden devices to protect vulnerable areas causes problems for many forces. Although not to be dismissed, Stormgear marines are not to be feared as ground-based menaces. =Technology= Traditional Goblin Tech As far as goblins go, the Stormgear are relatively tame demolitionists. Although keen on ordnance as a side effect of designing battleships, their methods are generally extremely refined and streamlined methodologies which make the most of their steam-driven ships whilst not sacrificing their cash. Their ability to create incredible vessels for a fractionate price is unmatched. Naval Combat The Stormgear Goblins equip their vessels to detect undersea dangers, be they very large sea animals or gnomish submarines. They are not necessarily well equipped to destroy them (although their battleships are) but are generally considerably better at avoiding these dangers than other races. They have the best chance of dealing with gnomish submarines of all fleets, especially as they have very recently developed depth charges that can be dropped a submarine’s path to ward it off, damage it or if they’re lucky destroy it outright. They use a lot of timber in construction of their ships, but compared to most other fleets there is a lot more steel. This makes them considerably more resistant to cannon-fire and being sunk by submarines. =History= Prosperity When the Stormgear Cartel officially became a splinter from another cartel, very few goblins (including most Trade Princes) took them seriously. In fact, when the leader of the time declared himself Trade Prince of the Stormgear Cartel, many of them simply turned a blind eye. Their amusement at these apparent upstarts would, however, give them much of the leeway they required to grow. Most of the splintered goblins were naval engineers, munitions designers alongside the usual complement of bankers, scrubs and aspirants. However, the ruthless and very much Trade Prince style governing of Huruk Stormgear turned their patch of ground on Kezan into a thriving shipyard. Rugged and streamlined construction efforts, in many places even devoid of corruption that would otherwise slow it down, turned the Stormgear Shipyard into a hub of activity. It was after this point that other Trade Princes took notice, but mostly to take advantage - they had no navy, they were selling on the ships they made for a healthy profit. This continued unabated for a long time. For so long did it go on, that even as the seat of Trade Prince underhandedly changed places within the same ancestry a dozen times, the Shipyard grew and became a prominent fixture on Kezan. From here its private forces grew quietly - its own merchant fleet to ship out the metals and minerals they were mining out of their mountain and its own fleet of destroyers and battleships to guard them. By the time another Cartel made a target of the Stormgears, they were ready to repel them. Tension with the Steamwheedle Cartel Even to this day, the tensions between Steamwheedle and Stormgear came to nothing material. No official outbreak of violence or heated verbal disputes. However, the tension - particularly between sailors of either cartel - was palpable whenever they encountered each other. Steamwheedle possessed, and still possess, the largest merchant fleet with escorts included. However, by the time the year had reached 20 the Stormgear was threatening that title. Strategic avoidance of selling to Steamwheedle and amplified production was even beginning to outpace them to such a degree it would only be another half-decade before their fleet was dwarfed. Unable to respond correctly, they tried many underhand tactics - most of which came to no avail, as the new Trade Prince Ergan Stormgear squashed every attempt with ruthless efficiency. Even attempts to exploit the inevitably growing corruption in the Stormgear Shipyards came to nothing. That was, however, before they realised a problem they were encountering... Tension with Kul Tiras The Stormgear Shipyard occupied a relatively small stretch of land on Kezan. Even with extensive mining to create new homes, they were running out of space for their spiralling population. Sprawling structures that creakily reached for the sky were erected to make best use of the space in the city - but it was not enough. As a result, the Trade Prince sent out some of his innumerable ships to locate an apt place to found a new settlement or possibly even to move to permanently. They found a set of moderately large islands just south of Kul Tiras, which together formed the Tiran Peninsula. Stormgear settlers swarmed the islands. Its fleet surrounded it and protected it while new goblin villages sprung up all over; it was here they recieved their first warning from Kul Tiras, who feared aggression (and competition) from these goblins and served them with a notice not to expand any closer to Kul Tiras and equally warned them against excessive efforts to colonise the Peninsula. The Stormgear Cartel moved no further into Kul Tiras territory, but they did ignore the latter part. They thoroughly colonised the Tiran Peninsula, bringing the tensions to the brink of outright war - but neither side considered it worth it to do so. The Tiran Deception The Steamwheedle Cartel, ever wary of allowing the Stormgears to exceed their fleet's size especially considering the comparatively miniscule membership of the cartel itself, decided to take action once they caught wind of these tensions, and formed a cunning if brutal plan to take Ergan Stormgear down a notch. Several Steamwheedle destroyers were disguised as Stormgear ships and sailed straight past the Tiran Peninsula, where they opened fire on a Kul Tiras battleship and the transport it had been escorting. The Battleship was sunk and the transport almost crippled. The disguised vessels then made off toward the Peninsula until they were out of sight - at which point they turned sharply south, and headed back to Kezan. It was swiftly executed and with a remarkably hole-free secrecy, meaning this is known by very few even amongst the Steamwheedle cartel. The transport immediately returned to Boralus, and an infuriated Kul Tiran government responded brutally and without even waiting. Their navy swept into action and swiftly decimated the ill-prepared northern defences of the Tiran Peninsula. Marines stormed the settlements, razing a few larger ones entirely and running the goblins off the islands. They had no idea what hit them, nor did they really know why it had happened. However, the fight for the Tiran Peninsula came to a halt as Ergan swept into action and mustered a late defence. Risking losing his new capital-in-construction, he adamantly held the line, and losses started to accumulate on both sides. But, he was still losing. A Last Ditch Effort Overconfident in his naval strength, Ergan was making plans to evacuate entirely. However, he knew his retreat would be sunk by the encroaching Kul Tiras blockade if he tried to escape. He made a decision few goblins ever liked to make. He sent for help from the Horde, promising the cartel's loyalty and remaining naval might if they assisted in the escape from the Tiran Peninsula. Garrosh Hellscream, being the first ranking orc to hear of it, didn't wait for permission. The allegiance of a naval power, a goblin one at that, would be incredibly useful. He mustered a force of ships and, coordinated with the Stormgear evacuation efforts, blew a hole in the Kul Tiran blockade. The Fate of Stormgear Shipyards The Shipyard was being managed by one of Ergan's moguls at the time, but when news spread of their annihilation in the Tiran Peninsula, greedy eyes set themselves upon the Stormgear Cartel's capital. First in was the Steamwheedle cartel, whom successfully started to buy out, blackmail and steal the land yard by yard, and without the strength of numbers they struggled to resist. Furthermore, when the Stormgear declared their allegiance with the Horde it was a final death knoll for their time on Kezan. Now, the Trade Coalition moved to remove them entirely to preserve the appearance of Kezan's neutrality. The Stormgears were ejected and their remaining lands largely dominated by Steamwheedle. Darkness Rising The Stormgear Cartel is a crippled shipwreck. Much of its navy is at the bottom of the ocean, the majority of its population dead on the Tiran Peninsula or re-assimilated into Steamwheedle; it now throws what's left of its navy and population behind Garrosh's eastern campaign, and Ergan Stormgear - broken but still as ambitious and ruthless as ever - plans to regrow his Cartel and perhaps, at one time or another, reconstruct his navy in its militaristic height.